The Leftovers: Milan Fashion Week FW12

On the Milan runways, everything felt disjointed. The sense that a strong story ran throughout the collections faded away here. Of course, the lack of a dominant theme doesn't have to be a problem. In fact, it is often something to be applauded. Original thought can sometimes be hard to come by in this industry, and its appearance is always appreciated. But in Milan, it didn’t feel as if the disconnection from the direction of the season was deliberate. Instead it felt as if many of the collections were grasping. For purpose? For relevance? I’m not sure.

Still there were themes that could be seen and conclusions that could be drawn. The Lady was still present, though some of the dark sensuality had been sapped from her.

At Dsquared²

At Gabriele Colangelo

At Gianfranco Ferré

At No. 21

At Fendi

At Bottega Veneta

At Alberta Ferretti

At Marco de Vincenzo

A spate of menswear-inspired tailoring, not seen in the previous cities, stole a piece of The Lady's spotlight.

At Genny

At Emilio Pucci

At Etro

The peplums still lingered, occasionally in extreme forms that breathed new life into the trend.

At Bally

At Dsquared²

At Bottega Veneta

The furs, the leathers, and the velvets populated everything from collars to entire sweaters.

At Missoni

At Alberta Ferretti

At Dsquared²

At Fendi

At Iceberg

At Sportmax

At Salvatore Ferragamo

At Luisa Beccaria

And the brocades, which had played in the backgrounds of New York and London, came to the fore in Milan.

At Roberto Cavalli

At Ter et Bantine

At Aquilano.Rimondi

At Gucci

Blanket-like coats meant to shelter you from any and every chill continued to be displayed alongside more classic choices.

At Jil Sander

At Gianfranco Ferré

At Piazza Sempione

At Albino

And like London, Milan’s signature cropped up like it does almost every season. Sexy. Tight. Revealing.

At Dolce & Gabbana

At Emilio Pucci

At Versace

At Francesco Scognamiglio

Months later, I’m still unsure what it is that Milan caused me to think and feel. I doubt that uncertainty will fade before the next season begins.


Photos via